Jack's Fangtastic Adventure - Part Fifteen
Walter was upset.
The call had come through for a base wide search to be carried out for Colonel O'Neill, who had somehow gone missing from the infirmary, and Walter was stuck in the Control Room, unable to help.
He had done his part, hunting behind equipment for the Colonel, knowing full well that there was no way the injured man had snuck in without being spotted. Then he sat back and watched as the SF's guarding the Gate did the same thing in the vast, almost empty room.
He shook his head ruefully, wondering at the futility of the exercise, given that there were even less hiding places in the Gate Room than in the Control Room. He wanted to do something more, wanted to help organize the search, but instead he was here.
He knew someone had to monitor the equipment, and guard the Gate, but why him? Colonel O'Neill was a well liked officer, and one that Walter had grown to respect over the years.
He wanted to do more.
Walter sighed as he turned away from the window, going back to the program he was running on one of the computers. For the last two days he'd tried to complete this work, but nothing he could do would make it run correctly and now it was taking five hours to do a process that last week was only taking twenty minutes.
He narrowed his eyes, glaring at the machine. Major Carter would have been able to fix it in a few minutes, but she had been off world, looking for the Colonel.
He poised his fingers over the keyboard, determined to beat this thing, and for the next few minutes concentrated on his task.
"Sergeant!"
Walter groaned in frustration as the call came from the Gate Room. Typical – just when he was getting somewhere.
Moving back to the window, he looked down.
The guards were in a huddle, bending over something on the ramp, just in front of the Gate. Heaven help them if there was an unscheduled activation!
Then one of the SF's stepped back, and Walter had a clearer view of what was going on, recognizing the figure.
Confirmation came as a guard shouted up at him.
"It's the Colonel!"
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General Hammond had just entered the Briefing Room when the report reached him, and he was one of the first to respond.
He found his missing man lying on the cold metal of the ramp, his hospital gown soaked through with blood.
The guards made room, and he crouched down awkwardly, placing a hand on cold flesh. O'Neill's eyes opened at the touch of his hand, looking vacant at first, then suddenly focusing, catching his own and holding them.
"Colonel?"
"Hi, sir." The voice was soft and tentative.
Hammond tightened his grip on O'Neill's arm as the brown eyes slid shut.
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"Do you have any explanation for what happened?" Hammond would have run his fingers through his hair if he had had any – hair that was – fingers he had in abundance if the loud drumming on the Briefing Room table was anything to go by.
Doctor Fraiser shook her head, her gaze moving between her notes and the closed door. "I can only speculate at this time, sir. A connection between the animals on PX5-188 and the disappearance of the Colonel is obvious, given the reports from the SG teams."
"Is it likely to happen again?"
Janet lifted her shoulders in a shrug at Hammond's question. "There's no way of knowing." She paused before continuing, as if uncomfortable with her next words. "I've ordered him restrained."
There were small sounds of protest from O'Neill's younger teammates.
"Will that prevent his disappearance?"
Janet turned her gaze to the Jaffa at the far end of the long table, and Hammond leaned forwarded to better hear her reply.
"I don't see how it can, but I have to try everything."
"O'Neill will not be pleased." Teal'c articulated the thoughts that were running through everyone's minds.
"Is he conscious?" Daniel asked, distress showing in his voice.
"He should be coming out of the anesthetic soon." The doctor turned back to the General. "If I may, sir?"
Hammond nodded, understanding her desire to be with her patient. "Dismissed, Doctor."
"Janet." The Doctor stopped in the process of leaving, and looked back at Major Carter. "Is he allowed visitors?"
"Of course, Sam. In fact I'd rather his team was there when he wakes up."
Doctor Fraiser hurried out, and General Hammond waited for the door to close behind her before speaking. He looked at the worried faces around the table. The uncertainty he felt was mirrored in their eyes.
"Major," He drew Major Carter's attention back to him and watched as she straightened. "Do you have any speculation on the cause of this ability of the animals which may be of use?"
"I do have some theories, sir. It could be that the creatures are similar to the Reetou."
Daniel interrupted her. "But the Reetou were just invisible to us, they couldn't disappear from one place and appear in another at will. We know that's what Jack did from the evidence of the surveillance cameras. He didn't walk to the Gate Room."
"The dust on his clothing indicates he was elsewhere first." Teal'c reminded them. "As Daniel Jackson has stated, O'Neill could not have traveled any distance by traditional means, therefore he must have transported there in some way."
"Transported?"
"I do not mean that O'Neill was moved by a transporter such as the Asgard use, General." Teal'c explained. "I merely use the word to indicate a method of instantaneous travel."
"Actually, perhaps Teal'c has something there. The common thread in any descriptions of the animals' and the Colonel's disappearance, is a shimmering of light." Major Carter grabbed a pen from the table and began making notes on the pad in front of her. "I'll set up some equipment in the Colonel's room to monitor any changes similar to those that occur when a transporter beam is used."
"But how is Jack doing it?" Daniel waved one hand vaguely. "What's causing it?"
They could only look at each other, unable to answer.
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The first thing Jack saw was Janet Fraiser' face hovering over him, her forehead creased into a frown.
The first thing he felt was the tight band around his right wrist.
He shut his eyes again, forcing his breathing to calm, hearing the rapid beeps of a monitor from somewhere above his head. The light touch of a hand on his shoulder and the Doctor's calm voice reached him through the beginnings of panic and he dragged his eyes open again.
"Sir. You're in the infirmary. Do you remember what happened?"
He nodded, and took a grateful sip of the water she held out to him. "Hyenas." He glanced around, feeling the same disorientation he had experienced as he tried to reach the Gate. "Home?"
"Yes, sir, you're home." She took her hand away and he felt surprisingly bereft, as if he needed physical touch to be sure this was real. He tugged at his hand again, unable to lift it.
"Colonel, I have to run a few tests. You know the drill."
Jack nodded at the slightly apologetic tone in the Doc's voice, and blinked as a penlight was shone into his eyes.
Crap, it hurt! His head felt like it was about to explode and he rubbed his hand across his eyes in an effort to clear them, strands of color shooting across his vision.
He didn't hear Janet's gasp of surprise as he fought to stay focused.
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Colonel O'Neill slept, his injured arm, heavily bandaged, cushioned at his side. Sam was careful not to touch it as she attached the complicated monitoring equipment to his other arm, lying across his chest. She moved as silently as possible, not wanted to wake him, indicating her orders to the men helping her with gestures.
Finally everything was in place, and soon SG-1 and Janet were the only ones in the room.
The hours past slowly, and still the Colonel slept, and each time he flickered into transparency, one of his friends touched him, and brought him back.
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